Look Both Ways
by Chibi-Chichan
Summary: CHAPTER 3 UP. It's shocking to find out you're adopted. It's more shocking when after years your real mother returns to take you away after seeing you named as duelist champ on tv. Judai is in for more trouble than he wants...JxA FINALLY UPDATED!
1. Chapter 1

**Look Both Ways**

**It's shocking to find out you're adopted. It's more shocking when after years your real mother returns to take you away after seeing you named as duelist champ on tv. Judai is in for more trouble than he wants...JxA**

**...**

Judai woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of water dripping off of the roof and onto the cement. It was raining. He slowly brought himself to a sitting position. The sound was eerie, causing the hairs on the back of his neck to stand on end. It brought back memories that Judai could not completely remember; memories of a young brunette boy and an angry mother. The mother was yelling at the young crying boy; no matter how he tried to remember, Judai was never able to see the face of the lady. He could picture the flow of long wavy fair hair, the red lipsticked mouth. But nothing else.

He sighed. Although Judai didn't want those sad memories, he still wanted to ease his curious mind. He just wanted to figure it all out.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Judai stood up, still shirtless and uncaring about his state of appearance. It was Judai's third year at the Duel Academy; he was finally 17 and not at all worried of who might be visiting him while he was undressed. Upon reaching the door, he shivered slightly from the cool room and opened the door.

"Hi," whispered Asuka, who was in her blue nightgown. As Judai stared at her, he blushed slightly at what she was wearing. Suddenly, he felt very revealed.

"Hi," he muttered back.

Although it was not obvious to a stranger's eye, Asuka and Judai had officially begun dating a month ago. Even those who knew raised their eyebrows, for Judai and Asuka had hardly been seen together.

"Um...I couldn't sleep..." said Asuka, knowing it was a weak excuse to use to visit Judai at a time like this.

"Come in," Judai invited, opening his door wider for the Obelisk Blue student to step in. As she stepped in, Judai could smell the familiar sweet scent that Asuka always had. He leaned towards Asuka slightly to breathe in the fragrance with a slight, "mmm" as he did so.

Asuka smiled at him as she walked over to the bed. "Don't worry, I won't stay too long. I just wanted to talk 'til I got tired." she informed.

"Why didn't you go to Momoe or Junko, your friends?"

Frowning, Asuka said quietly, "Well...we haven't been spending that much time together..." When she said this, she intertwined her fingers together and twisted and turned them, as if she was worried that her words were too out there.

Judai looked at her with surprise. There was an awkward silence that followed and Judai filled it with a cough. "Um...er...but we can't er...sleep together..." he said, blushing at his words. "I mean, er...with our clothes on..." he feigned another cough.

Rolling her eyes, Asuka stood up and took Judai's hand, pulling him down to sit beside her on the bed. "Don't worry! We're not that stupid." she said, smiling. "You know, sometimes you're so immature. But it's cute...I like that." Asuka whispered, kissing Judai on the lips.

As Judai returned the kiss strongly, an unwanted memory suddenly hit him. The lady was grabbing his arm, wrenching him away from his father's protective embrace. She was saying words that he could not hear for he could not remember, but the red lipsticked mouth that spoke the words were curled into a horrible smile. The small boy was sobbing and crying out something inaudible. The lady's open hand came down hard and sharp, smashing against the boy's cheek and sending him against the brick wall of the alleyway.

He felt one of his ribs snap as if the moment was happening right then. The pain was excruciating and it was as if someone had finally turned the sound on full blast, for he could hear his own raggard breathing echoing through his mind, causing his ears to ache. He heard the stab of high heels into the concrete and saw the lady approaching him. He tried to back away from the woman but could not, for he only managed to slam into the wall, pain shooting up his back.

"No one's here to protect you anymore. You're mine." the lady's smooth voice said as she brought her foot forward and kicked the boy as hard as she could, snapping more of his ribs. He could hardly breathe now, each breath was burning his lungs. His screams filled the air and his head was spinning. He didn't know how long he could take this. The lady dug her high heel into his ribs, slowly cracking the next one.

"Judai! Judai!" called a distant voice. "JUDAI!"

Judai gasped and opened his eyes. Asuka was looking down at him while he lay on the bed, covered in cold sweat. "Judai, are you ok?" she asked in a gentle voice. "You were screaming so loud and you were...it was like you were having a fit...it was so scary..." Asuka whispered and Judai saw the fear and relief in her eyes.

"I'm s-s-sorry to have scared you...but I'm all right now..." he said hoarsely, stroking her cheek.

"It's all right...are you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah."

Asuka's eyes suddenly reflected hurt and sadness. "Judai...if there's anything troubling you...you know I'll do whatever I can to help you..." she whispered.

Judai flushed, realising that he was betraying Asuka's trust by lying and she could tell. But this thing was something that Judai did not want to share with anyone; a chapter in his life that he kept locked away and some of it he did not even know himself. Turning towards the window to watch the falling rain rather than watch the pain in Asuka's eyes, his heart ached dully. "No...there's nothing I'm keeping from you..." Judai lied, swallowing thickly.

There was silence and Judai continued to refuse to even glance at Asuka. Suddenly, the bed rose slightly and Asuka stepped softly onto the floor. "I'm going to bed." she muttered.

"Now?" Judai asked, surprised.

"Yes, I feel sleepy." she said in a rather cold tone.

Judai was suddenly angry. Why did she feel that she needed to know his personal stuff? Why was she nosing into his business? "Fine. Go to bed. I didn't want you here to nose into my business anyway." Judai said, equally as cold. He watched Asuka as she walked over to the door.

She turned to him, her eyes oddly bright and her cheeks flushed. "I was only trying to help! That's what people do in a relationship! They have a thing called trust!" she shouted angrily before storming out.

"Asuka!" Judai called but Asuka slammed the door before he could continue. "Damn." he cursed before falling onto his back on the bed. He suddenly regretted what had said and done.

...

Well, I have finished the first chapter. No mean reviews AKA flames or there won't be updates! Constructive criticism is welcome. NOW REVIEW PEOPLE!


	2. Chapter 2

**Story:** Look Both Ways

**Chapter Two:** Tearful Reunion

**Summary:** It's shocking to find out you're adopted. It's more shocking when after years your real mother returns to take you away after seeing you named as duelist champ on tv. Judai is in for more trouble than he wants...JxA

**Rating:** T

**Pairing:** Yuuki Judai(Jaden Yuki)/Tenjouin Asuka(Alexis Rhodes)

**A/N:** I apologise for the lack of updates...-;; I've been struggling in my anime writing for a quite a while...this was just written in hopes of trying to keep my stories alive...I've been dropping stories lately...-;;

**Special Thanks:** To a very special person, my beta TRFiD Queen who puts up with my lazyness...XD

**Disclaimer:** I do enjoy dreaming...

...

Everyone seemed to be in slow motion, as if wanting to move as slow as possible to torture Judai into insanity, which he was currently bordering on. But Judai simply continued to smile and laugh, as if he didn't mind. As if he wasn't truly dying inside, reliving horrific childhood memories that he thought he would never remember of when he was in his early teens. He sighed boredly as Shou and Kenzan continued to argue over whatever they were arguing over. Judai couldn't pay attention to any details anymore.

He was off in his own memory land, reliving the alleyway scene over and over again as if a sick-minded person had pressed the loop button on a tape and forced Judai to sit through his own nightmares over and over again, listening to his own youthful cries of pain and agony; the sound of the harsh woman's voice continuously mocking him.

"J...Judai..."

At the sound of his own name, Judai jumped and turned around, with a surprised look on his face when he found Asuka standing behind him. "O-oh...Asuka...ohayou..." he began in what he hoped to be a confident voice.

There was a pause where Asuka simply frowned. This was followed by a, "it's the afternoon Judai."

Judai sweat-dropped and laughed nervously. "Of course...yes...I knew that..." he lied.

Asuka continued to stare at Judai. "Judai...I'm..." Asuka swallowed. Her expression, though sad, also appeared to be slightly nervous.

"...Asuka...?" muttered Judai as he watched Asuka seemed to struggle to say what she needed to.

"Judai...I'm sor-"

"Yo, Judai!" shouted Shou causing both Judai and Asuka to jump in surprise.

"Oh, Shou, what's up?" asked Judai.

"Ne, I think there's a someone who wants to see you or something. That's what Kenzan told me." Shou said.

"Somebody to see me?" Judai repeated blankly. "Where is this person?"

Shou paused to think. "Ano...I think...they're at your room..." he replied.

Judai nodded. "All right then. Oh," he turned to Asuka, "what was it that you were going to say..."

"Judai! Judai! I-is th-that you?" cried a voice from behind Judai.

His eyes widen as Judai felt an electric shock run through his body. He turned slowly to the new arrival and found a young woman behind him, dressed in a warm checkered and striped brown trenchcoat and fine red silk shirt with a denim skirt. But what had caught most of his attention was that she had long, blonde, wavy hair and a red lip-sticked mouth. Judai had seen them before somewhere... yet nothing came to his mind as he looked into the lady's brown eyes that were now shining with tears. Nothing would come as the lady ran towards him crying out his name with tears cascading down her face.

But as soon as she embraced him...

As soon as she reached up and wrapped her arms around him...

He knew he had seen those brown eyes somewhere...

Eyes that were his own...

"Get away from me!" he shouted, immediately shoving the woman away from him. He put a hand to his face.

He could remember now. Everything. The abuse he had to go through... the suffering that did not stop, no matter how his step-father tried to defend him. His step-father...that was right...his mother told him when she was young. She told him she hated both of them, that it was all their fault she was how she was. He remembered the horrible smell of cigarettes surrounding his mother whenever she came back home from going out with her friends. Unconsciously, Judai reached and touched his forearm at the memory of when his mother would put out her cigarettes on his arm, burning his tender skin as he cried out in agony, begging his her to stop.

"This is what you do to my heart. Every time I'm around you, you burn a hole into it. Don't you forget how much I _hate_ you." his mother had replied venomously at his cries.

"J-Judai..." his mother now stammered, tears still shining in her eyes as she looked up at her son who had now grown taller than her. "Remember...it's me..." she whispered softly. "Gomen-nasai...I'm sorry for everything Judai..." More tears slid down her face and her voice was sincere. "I'm sorry..." she continued to whisper.

Clenching his fists, Judai glanced around himself and noticed that everyone was staring at him and his mother. His stomach clenched as he turned back to his sorrowful mother. "I...I have nothing to do with you. Stop trying to humiliate me in public." Judai said, hissing the last part so only his mother could hear.

"J-Judai..." his mother whispered.

But Judai would hear none of it as he turned around and began to walk off. He was stopped in his tracks for Asuka stood in his way. The look she gave him...his stomach clenched even further, giving him a stomach ache. He stepped around her and walked off, ignoring his mother's call.

'Judai...' Asuka thought to herself, '...you have a lot of explaining to do...'

...

Um...that's all I could think of...hey, come on people! At least I updated right? RIGHT? (bows) I grovel at my reviewers feet... I am but a lazy bum, please forgive my pitifulness...anyways, review and I'll try to update faster! Thank you all!


	3. Chapter 3

**Look Both Ways**

It's shocking to find out you're adopted. It's more shocking when after years your real mother returns to take you away after seeing you named as duelist champ on tv. Judai is in for more trouble than he wants...JxA

**A/N:** (cries) It feels really sad and good to be updating some of my stories for once. I am so sorry for abandoning my duty as an author but a whole lot of crap got in the way and also my horrid memory... So anyways, hopefully I can make it up to you, my readers (if there still is anyone XD), by updating with this chapter. Hopefully it will make your over-a-year-wait worthwhile...

...

It was raining again and Judai lay in bed, wide awake and staring at the ceiling except not truly seeing it. His mind was occupied with memories and thoughts of his mother-her reappearance, the abuse she put him through, all the pain and suffering he had endured while he lived with her. He remembered how many rainy nights such as this night that he would cry himself to sleep. He cried so much that eventually he couldn't shed a tear anymore even when his mother would backhand his face, step on his feet deliberately as she walked past him in her stilettos.

All the memories; everything.

It all hurt.

They were all too painful to remember and yet, Judai could not erase them from his memories, nor could he pushed them out of his thoughts as he rolled over onto his side and punched his pillow into a shape he believed to be more comfortable.

After a few moments of trying to tempt sleep to take over him, Judai sighed and sat up in bed, running a trembling hand through his hair. At that moment, his phone rang and he glanced over at it, contemplating whether or not to venture over to it across the room and answer it. Sighing once more, he got up out of bed and approached the phone, checking the caller ID before answering.

It was Asuka's number.

Biting back irritation at the fact that she'd rather call him than talk to him face to face, Judai picked up the receiver and answered. "Hello?"

"J-Judai..." Asuka stammered, sounding far more nervous than Judai expected her to be.

"Asuka, why are you calling me?" Judai asked, deciding to be blunt.

There was a pause as Asuka hesitated and then she spoke up, her voice weak as if she were now unsure of her decision. "I thought... that you wouldn't really... want to talk to me, I mean, you looked like... you were pre-occupied with something else and... I didn't want to... bother you too much..." Asuka trailed off feeling completely idiotic.

Yet at her words, Judai's heart softened and he spoke gently into the phone. "Asuka... how could you believe that you would bother me? You're the only person I actually want to see right now..."

Blushing, Asuka smiled as she held back the tears from forming at the corners of her eyes. "Can I come see you then?" she whispered the question into the phone.

"I want you here," was Judai's reply causing Asuka's heart to skip a beat.

"Okay, I'll see you in a few minutes then," Asuka said softly into the phone before hanging up.

Things were finally looking up.

Judai smiled to himself as he walked back to his bed and sat on the edge of it, thinking only of Asuka when there was a knock on his door. He glanced up at the door and frowned, knowing that Asuka could not have possibly come that quickly. He got up once more from his bed and headed towards the door, curious as to who could possibly awaiting him outside of it. As his hand met the door knob he suddenly felt queasy but could not understand why.

But when he opened the door, calling out "hello?" as his eyes greeted the sight before him, he immediately understood why.

"Hello Judai," his mother said, smiling up at him.

Judai gulped and seemed frozen as he continued to stare in horror at his mother, memories of her flashing in his mind. His numb mind slowly registered that she was indeed standing before him and not his imagination, and he gradually moved back, his fear still controlling him as he shakily attempted to close the door on his mother.

Her hand reached out and stopped the door from closing and her head appeared around the door, a disapproving frown on her face. "Judai! You won't even let your own mother in?" she asked, shocked at his reaction.

Words seemed to fail Judai as his mother invited herself in by pushing the door open and closing it behind her before removing her coat and placing it on the coat stand beside the door. She sighed in relief and then turned to Judai and smiled softly at him as tears formed at the corners of her eyes. "It's been so long... and I know that I've been a horrible mother... leaving you alone all this time without keeping in contact but Judai, I wanted to say that I was sorry... that I still love you, my son," she whispered as she stepped towards Judai, arms out with the intention of embracing him.

There was no reaction from Judai as his mother embraced him and sobbed into his chest, his mind was too stunned to think, his body too numb to move. He couldn't understand what was happening, nor comprehend what his mother was saying. All he could think of was his mother's hand roughly pulling at his hair as a child and slinging him into his bedroom wall, shouting profanity at him as his body ached all over and he begged for her to stop.

"P-Please... please stop..." Judai whispered causing his mother to stiffen.

The young Judai was crying and yet his mother still reached down and pulled him up by the hair before beating him repeatedly even though he screamed and cried for her to stop.

These memories were forcing Judai's mouth to open and repeat words that he had constantly cried to his mother as she abused him mercilessly. "Mother... it hurts... please stop..." he whispered.

His mother pulled away and looked up at him, the look in her eye causing the fear from his childhood inside him to stir. "Judai," she began softly, "I don't understand what you mean. I just want to be a family again. We can live together again, away from this place and I'll look after you like I used to..."

"No. NO!" Judai shouted, memories of his old home returning to him. "I won't go! Not with you; not with someone I don't consider a mother!" he yelled, his mind finally kicking into gear and he pushed his mother away roughly.

Silence rang out through the room.

Judai was rooted to the spot and unable to move. He knew what this silence meant. It was the silence from his childhood that signalled that his mother was about to hit him. Silence that warned him to cringe away from his mother's hand. To protect himself as his mother lashed out at him again and again. When he was six he used to think to himself that his mother was just sick, that she was only venting out her anger on him because she was sick and that she didn't understand that she was hurting him. But when he had turned seven and was admitted to hospital by his step-father with the excuse that school bullies had beaten him up and had had to avoid police involvement which his mother resolved by moving to another city, he came to the realisation that his mother was sick but not in the way he thought normal.

His mother smiled up at him, a smile he could see through and knew she was forcing. "You're just upset that you're leaving your friends, but once you're with me, everything will be just fine-"

"I won't go with you, you're the last person on earth that I'd want to be with. You... don't you have any shame to come back here expecting me to come back to you?"

Once those words escaped from his mouth, Judai knew that he had no chance now; that he had pushed too far.

It was unexpected and Judai fell to his knees at the blow to his stomach. He coughed and attempted to protect himself but as when he was young, his mother was far too fast. She brought her fist down onto his cheek and swiftly kicked the other side of his face, sending him sprawling. He was dizzy and uncoordinated but managed to retaliate by hitting her when she had approached him. Her reaction was what caused him to yell in pain.

She dug her nails into his face, scratching wildly before kneeing him in the stomach and winding him. He attempted to swing at her again but she brought her arm down around his neck and flung him to the ground, his head creating an awful sound as it hit the floor.

That was when she bought it out.

Her cigarette pack and lighter.

She placed a foot on Judai's chest and pressed down on it causing him to cry out as she took a seat on the edge of Judai's bed, her foot still resting on him. She put the cigarette into her mouth and clicked the lighter on. "Whoever said," she mumbled whilst lighting the cigarette, "that I would allow you to make your own decision about this matter?" she asked aloud, not expecting an answer from Judai and taking a long drag from her cigarette before blowing the smoke out.

Suddenly, she swiftly reached down and pushed the lit cigarette end on Judai's left cheek causing him to scream. Pulling the cigarette back, she brought it to her lips and continued to smoke, ignoring Judai's cries. She then turned and glared at him as the cries had grown as an annoyance to her ears. "You make me sick. Your face, everything about you pisses me off. Why the hell are you still living? Why the hell do you deserve to live and make an ass of yourself while I'm suffering? Huh? Why don't you tell me you freakin' fag?" she asked, kicking out at his ribs with her other foot with each sentence she said. "You make me sick!" she yelled, spitting in his face and giving him another round of beatings.

Another rib snapped. Another cigarette burn. Blood. Blood. It was splattered on her face now. He must've coughed it out when she had punched him... what number of time would it have been now? His mind was growing foggy. He couldn't think straight anymore. He felt like dying. Yes, maybe that was a better alternative. Asuka's crying face appeared in his head.

_'I'm sorry Asuka...'_ Judai thought as she continued to sob in his mind, his conscious slowly slipping away as his eyes closed. _'The pain... is too much...'_

_..._

Once again, Asuka knocked firmly on Judai's door and waited, impatient. What could he possibly be doing? Why wasn't he answering the door? He knew she was coming, so why was he taking so long? Asuka sighed and stared at the door. Should she try and force it open? Afterall, Judai could've collapsed on the floor and could be suffering a stroke or something of the sort. Asuka mentally slapped herself. She was over-reacting as usual.

Maybe... he had changed his mind and didn't want to see her any more. At that thought, Asuka's heart sank. Even though this was a possibility she still couldn't believe it because of his sincere words on the phone. He couldn't possibly have been lying to her...

Asuka wasn't sure anymore. All she knew was that it was too late to do anything else tonight. So she decided, that it was best for her to talk to Judai tomorrow when she got the opportunity.

With that in mind, she turned and began to head back to her dorm, glancing over her shoulder every now and then and wondering whether or not she was making the right decision.

She just couldn't shake off this ominous feeling.

...

Yay! I finally updated! As you can tell, once I again, I totally fail at descriptions but hey, I tried and at least I updated. Please review, it means a lot to me.


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